Life's a Dance (You Learn as You Go)
by AcesOfSpade
Summary: Dean Winchester and Castiel di Angelo are rival singers. Well, Johnny Jackson and Misha Collins are rival singers. They're both cover artists who sing country. Johnny sings everything, Misha concentrates on 1990-2008. When their managers pull them together for a special duet, how does this affect everything? Will they learn that they shouldn't be enemies?
1. Chapter 1

Up on that stage, in his jeans and his boots, Dean Winchester felt invincible. He had people that adored him for what he did, he got to show off what he loved doing in front of sold out crowds, and he got to just be himself. They never choreographed any of his routines, he just got up on stage with his bow-legs and did what he did. None of his shows were ever the same.

As he sang the last few bars of 'Little Toy Guns', one of his more famous covers, the crowd burst into applause. He flashed them a bright white grin. He loved getting praise. He wasn't vain, oh no, he just liked knowing he was doing a good job at what he loved. He loved knowing people _liked_ hearing him sing and do awkward dances while up on stage, screens showing his music videos behind him as he did. That had been Charlie's idea. Charlie was the resident tech expert part of his crew. She thought it would be epic to have videos playing behind him after he did a big-time concert alongside Montgomery Gentry, a small town band called the Barn Burners, and Alan friggin' Jackson. When Dean had been introduced to his all-time hero, he had nearly fainted.

As Dean headed back to the wings, his manager-slash-mother came up to him with a grin.

"Oh honey, you were amazing." Mary grinned. She'd been a country singer too. She was littler known, but Dean had followed in his Mom's footsteps. John had been a drummer in a rock band that did Kansas covers.

"Mo-om." Dean muttered. "Not at work." He was a light shade of pink, but he actually didn't mind it.

Mary rolled her eyes and kissed Dean on the cheek. "Well, come on, Mr. Famous. I have big news for the crew, and you."

Dean followed his mother curiously, noting that the crew was nowhere to be seen, probably waiting somewhere for Mary and Dean.

His suspicions were confirmed when they reached the green room, and the crew was lounging around on chairs and couches. Charlie and Jo were off in the corner flirting; Kevin and Sam were talking nerd; Bobby and John, Dean's Dad, were talking about the band they were in; and last, but not least, Adam was in the corner, sulking because he hadn't made friends within the crew. Sure, Adam was 24, but he wasn't very sociable. His one best friend had died in a car accident when he was 16. After that, he didn't really talk to anyone.

Dean went over to sit with his youngest brother to hear Mary's announcement. Mary had cleared her throat before she spoke.

"Alright, everyone. I have great news! Dean has been chosen by the manager of another huge name in the business to sing a duet for his next album." Mary grinned.

Dean nearly chocked on the pop he had acquired. He was going to sing a _duet_ with a _stranger_? If anything, Dean was a soloist who did duets by himself. The only other person he had sang with was Adam, as Adam had appeared in a few of his shows as a special treat. Adam had some awesome pipes, so Dean granted him his own fame. Johnny and Kenny Jackson, they were called. They'd adopted stage names, because they wanted privacy.

"Can we make this a three-way?" Adam asked curiously. "The Jackson brothers and the other singer?"

Mary tilted her head in consideration. "I'll talk to his manager. It's a great idea, honey." she smiled. Adam grinned. He loved any opportunity to get himself out there.

Once Mary left the room, the crew went abuzz.

"A duet?" Charlie could be heard muttering.

"Wonder who he is?" Sam mused for the whole room.

John had gotten up and went over to his sons. He grinned at them. "Congrats. You might get more publicity from this."

"Which means more concerts." Adam and Dean finished. They learned early on that the more publicity you get, the more people want you to play gigs.

John nodded. "So you better practice." he said teasingly and headed back over to Bobby.

A similar situation had unfolded in a city on the other side of the country. Vancouver, BC, to be exact. A dark haired man with a devilish smirk had been singing to a similarly large crowd, the fans cheering and a few with some.. embarrassing signs.

* * *

Castiel di Angelo was a great singer. He had climbed into popularity by singing cover of '90s country songs on YouTube. He had later branched into the early 21st century, but nothing beyond 2008. The song he had just finished, as a nice closer, was 'Take It Like a Man'. It was an awesome song, one of his favourites. Castiel wasn't afraid of singing female songs. He just sang. He didn't care about pronouns or labels.

Once he finished, he was off the stage after a few bows, heading to his manager in the green room. She had instructed him to find her there after the show. Unknown to Castiel, she was dealing with another manager, who was in Trios-Rivieres at the moment with her client.

Castiel stepped into the green room, where Naomi sat, almost glaring at him from her seat. She motioned for him to sit across from her, offering him a bottle of water. He accepted it with a nod of gratitude and waited for her to speak.

"I've gotten you a duet for your next album." Naomi said simply. She took a sip of her own water, penning a few things down on her clipboard. Naomi was a very.. up-tight, strict manager.

"A duet? With?" Castiel asked. It wasn't unusual that Naomi got him duets. Most were just for their albums, but this one was for his? He was excited.

"Johnny Jackson." Naomi told him. Just then, her Blackberry went off, signifying a text. She help up a finger to Castiel while she answered it. "Strike that. Both Jackson brothers. It seems Kenny is eager to join."

Castiel tilted his head in thought. "The number one cover artists on the charts?" he asked. They were right above him. They were amazing, he would agree. He was excited to duet with them.

Naomi nodded. "I talked to their manager, Maryanne Winchester, and she said both boys would love to. You will be meeting them in Lawrence in three days time." she informed him.

"Kansas?" Castiel asked. Lawrence was his home town. He grew up there, but was isolated from everyone else in town. He'd always heard stories of the high school's best singer, Dean Winchester, dominating in musicals. Every show, he wished his parents were let him go to one, but they were strict in their ways. '_You are the youngest. Your older siblings can teach you_'. They were just excuses to use Castiel as their own personal Cinderella.

Naomi nodded once more. "Seems the three of you have similar roots." was all she said. That was the end of the conversation, apparently. Naomi had stood up and left, probably going to meet the crew to tell them to clean up the stage. She treated the crew like crap, despite them being Castiel's family. Anna worked tech, Gabriel and Michael were manual labourers, and Lucifer was anything else that needed doing. He was a versatile guy, for being named after the Devil.


	2. Chapter 2

Three days later, Dean, Adam, and Castiel were sitting in an office in Lawrence, staring into each others eyes. They didn't know what to say to each other, as they had just been sat down in a room together. Castiel squinted his crystal blue eyes at the older man in front of him. He seemed to have a smug air to him, masking a nervous one. He knew that Johnny Jackson only did duets with his younger brother Kenny, so it was granted that he was nervous. Adam was just sitting there as his brother stared at the man across from them. He just rolled his eyes and clicked his tongue to get their attention.

"Johnny, Misha, fait attention, les garçon" he said teasingly. He'd picked up French with all of the Louisiana and Quebec concerts they'd done over the last three years. He found it to be a fun language, and the perfect language for teasing.

Dean and Castiel finally broke their stare, turning to Adam. Dean resisted the urge to punch his brother's shoulder, instead glaring at him. Castiel tilted his head in confusion.

"I do not understand." he muttered. Was it another language? He'd only ever learned English, his parents never teaching him foreign languages. It sounded like Canadian French, but he wasn't certain.

"Français, mon ami nouveau." Adam told him, just to confuse him more.

"What my idiot brother said was 'pay attention, boys' and 'French, my new friend'." Dean translated. Adam had been teaching himself French, and he was pretty fluent by this point.

"Oh." Castiel muttered. French. He was right. Good.

"Anyway, are we just gonna sit here and do jack, or are we going to pick a song?" Adam asked, leaning back in his chair. "I suggest something by Alan Jackson or Kenny Chesney."

"Kenny, those are solo artists. There are three of us." Castiel reminded him. "My opinion is some sort of band, like Rascal Flatts."

"You're all giving good ideas, but I have the ultimate: Alabama." Dean chimed in. Both other men nodded in approval.

"Mountain Music?" Adam spitballed, but Dean shook his head.

"Song of the South?" Castiel suggested, which Dean also shot down.

"Actually, scratch Alabama. I have the perfect song. Life's a Dance." Dean amended. "You two know it?"

Adam and Castiel nodded. "Yeah." they said at the same time.

"It is a good choice. But we would have to split it into parts to optimize our chances of being heard and sharing our distinct vocal talents. Johnny, you are a tenor, Kenny, you are a mezzo-soprano, and I am an alto." Castiel commented.

Adam snorted. "Mezzo-soprano my ass. I'm a soprano." he laughed. "And anyway, I shot first verse."

"Ah, but there are only two verses." Dean reminded him. "How are we gonna cut it so we sing alone and together?"

Castiel tapped his chin in thought. "If I am correct, the order is as follows: verse, chorus, verse, thrice repetition of chorus." he said. "One could sing first verse, one first chorus, one second verse, and the three of us singing the proceeding three choruses."

Dean and Adam nodded in approval.

"Great idea, Misha." Adam grinned. "Still call first."

"Have fun with that, demon child." Dean chuckled. "Just to make it so we go down octaves every new singer, I'll go second verse and Misha can do the chorus."

"I can do that." Castiel nodded.

The discussion of melodies and harmonies continued for a good hour and a half before Mary and Naomi entered the room. They looked like they had something serious to say, so the trio turned to face them.

"Now boys," Mary began, "we thought that, since you're going to be singing together, you could.. get to know each other."

Dean and Adam groaned. 'Get to know each other' meant sharing real names and shit like that. They never liked doing that. On the opposite, Castiel seemed all for it. He liked sharing things about himself with new duet partners.

"Now, we expect you to know a few things new about each other by the end of the day." Naomi said strictly. With that, the managers left the room. The trio turned back to face each other.

Adam spoke up first. "Well, first off, I'm Adam. Adam Winchester. That's Dean." he introduced, jabbing a thumb in Dean's direction.

"I am Castiel di Angelo." Castiel informed them. His eyes were wide, though, as if in shock. "Dean Winchester? The Lawrence High musical lead for years running?" he asked.

Dean nodded with a smirk. "The one and only. You go to the school?"

Castiel shook his head. "My siblings did, but I did not." he said, side-stepping telling them why. "But they came home with stories of your roles. Peter Pan in freshman year, Danny Zucko in sophomore, Prince Eric in junior, and Aladdin in senior. They said you were amazing."

"Wait, is your brother Lucifer di Angelo?" Dean asked. "He was our main set builder."

Castiel nodded. "He and Michael are the oldest, followed by Gabriel, then Anael. She prefers Anna, however." he said.

"Quite a few siblings." Adam commented. "We just have each other and Sam."

"Sam? Is he your brother?" Castiel asked. "Or sister?"

Adam and Dean snorted.

"We might call him Samantha, but he's our brother. Middle kid." Adam told him.

Castiel gave a small smile at that. Sibling teasing was how he acquired his only nickname to date: Cassie. That was from Gabriel, the 'class clown' of the family.

The next few hours flew by in what seemed like minutes. They had learned quite a bit about each other, including the house fire that nearly killed the Winchester's mother, and the mugging that nearly killed their father. It was such a sad history.

Castiel had shared stories of growing up with his Aunt Naomi, his manager. His parents, Charles and Rebecca, had died in a car crash when he was still a baby, not but six months old. He had no memories of them, but Lucifer and Michael did, blaming Castiel for their deaths.

What also came out was ages of the singers and their siblings. Castiel's family was like this: Lucifer and Michael were 36, Gabriel was 35, Anael was 32, and Castiel was 31. The Winchesters were a bit more sparsely spread. Dean was 36, Sam was 32, and Adam was 24. Dean was 12 when Adam was born. He never thought Mom and Dad would have any more kids, but then Adam came along. A similar situation had happened with the di Angelo family. Lucifer and Michael, five years old at the time, were upset Mom and Dad had brought home _another_ little squirmy baby. Anael was enough, at a year old. Gabriel was his own bag of gummy worms at four.

Finally, Mary and Naomi returned for their clients, as they knew everyone was falling asleep by this point. It was four in the morning, and the boys all had autograph signings at the high school in the morning. It was part of the start of the publicity for the duet.

Mary poked her boys awake, as they had fallen asleep on their arms. "Adam, Dean, wake up my boys." she whispered. She managed to rouse Adam, who was a light sleeper. Adam proceeded to wake Dean up by flicking his ear. Dean almost immediately jerked awake and blinked.

Castiel had been awake, so Naomi gestured for him to follow her. They would be returning home for the next few nights, meaning Castiel would have to suck it up and not freak out.

Mary took her boys back to the house they had moved into after the fire. It was a nice place, but not the home Dean liked. He missed the old house, even now, 32 years later. The boys took off their shoes and headed up to their rooms, crashing almost immediately.

Castiel was curled in a ball on his old bed, trying not to cry. He never liked this house, not after Aunt Naomi had come to live with them. Aunt Naomi had out him through hell, making him her own personal cleaner. Never let him get an education, and had his siblings teach him. It's why he can't do math very well.


End file.
